Whoosh!
Thanos retreated more than a hundred meters and couldn't help gasping for breath.
The battle was too intense.
Even with his powerful physique, he was already starting to feel strained.
Only by relying on the power of the Infinity Stones could he barely contend with Karl, whose strength had only just fully taken shape.
Why was this sorcerer's power so overwhelming?
Even Odin and the Ancient One would be no more than this, right?
Thanos's heart sank slightly.
In the face of such power, there was a real chance that even he could fall here.
He absolutely could not allow that to happen.
"If this becomes impossible to salvage, I'll have to find a chance to leave."
"I'm not like Dormammu. What came here is only an avatar for him."
"As long as I survive, I can always start again."
Thanos could not help thinking that to himself.
He had only paused to catch his breath for a moment.
But over on the other side, Dormammu was already starting to buckle under the pressure.
The aftershocks from the clash between the two of them had already begun destroying dozens of surrounding blocks.
On the ground,
battle scars were everywhere.
"Thanos, are you done yet? Are you still refusing to stop?"
"If this avatar of mine dies, you'll die too!"
Dormammu shouted loudly.
The skin on his face twitched uncontrollably.
The longer he fought,
the more he felt that this human brat was monstrously abnormal.
What kind of combat power was this?
He was clearly so young, yet he possessed absurdly refined combat experience.
Had this kid started learning how to fight while still in the womb?
Dormammu abruptly twisted aside,
barely avoiding the razor-sharp Spatial Blades in Karl's hand.
Dark power surged, and massive spheres emerged from the void, smashing toward Karl.
Effortlessly,
the sharp Rift-Cleaving Blade in Karl's hand split those plague-like spheres apart.
It could only be described as
completely effortless, with no difficulty at all.
It cost him practically nothing.
After fighting for so long, there was not even the slightest trace of sweat on Karl's forehead.
Dormammu, however, was feeling overwhelming pressure.
He had even needed Thanos to help him.
Thanos also understood the principle that if the lips were gone, the teeth would grow cold.
He took two deep breaths and charged forward once more.
After battling for so long,
his control over the power of the Infinity Stones had improved somewhat as well.
At that moment,
he used the power of the Reality Stone.
Matter itself was directly altered by the Infinity Stone's power.
Right in front of Karl, a gigantic stone wall appeared out of nowhere, blocking his attack.
"So, Thanos, you can use your brain after all. What a rare sight."
Karl let out a mocking laugh.
A flash of golden light appeared, and his whole body vanished, reappearing behind the stone wall.
The Rift-Cleaving Blade in his hand thrust straight toward Thanos.
That incomparably sharp aura made Thanos feel a chill run down his back, every hair on his body standing on end.
He spun around violently
and used the Infinity Gauntlet to block the fatal strike.
Clang!
A piercing sound rang out.
Another wave of force spread outward with the two of them at the center.
A fresh scar of destruction was carved into the ground.
Thanos was sent sliding back more than a hundred meters, his feet leaving two long trenches in the earth.
That alone showed just how terrifying Karl's attacking power was.
Karl had just been about to press the pursuit and kill Thanos cleanly in one stroke,
when Dormammu attacked again from the other side.
A purple beam of energy shot out from his mouth.
Karl dodged in a flash, and the attack missed him directly.
The energy beam carved a deep, blackened trench into the ground.
With the Dark Dimension backing him,
Dormammu hurled wave after wave of energy beams at Karl as though they cost him nothing.
The sheer force of that power was enough to make anyone shudder.
The ground rumbled and shook under the bombardment.
And yet, out of all those countless energy beams, not a single one could touch Karl.
"Instant teleportation!"
Thanos's eyes widened.
This kid was far too terrifying.
When Karl moved through space before, there would at least be a flash of golden light and a tiny pause, giving them some chance to predict him.
But now,
Karl had truly reached instantaneous movement.
He shifted through space without the slightest warning.
There was no way to know where he would appear in the next moment.
That kind of terrifying learning talent
still made Thanos feel a chill deep in his bones.
It was just like his hand-to-hand combat skill. After only fighting him a few times, this sorcerer's combat techniques had already become even more refined.
He was a complete monster!
Grinding his teeth, Thanos activated the Infinity Stones in his hand.
The power of the stones surged again.
Beams of energy shot toward Karl, trying to cooperate with Dormammu, cut off Karl's movement routes, and kill him in one blow.
"I think I already told you not to try controlling power you can't control..."
Karl gave a mocking laugh and used the same trick again.
A golden glow slowly surfaced in his eyes.
The purple beam Thanos had fired was directly redirected through a Portal and slammed back into Dormammu's body.
Purple energy exploded against Dormammu, scattering sparks all over him.
Dormammu glared furiously at Thanos.
"Thanos, if you don't know how to fight, then stop interfering!"
He roared through clenched teeth, while the power of the Dark Dimension emerged once more to replenish his consumption.
Even more powerful attacks blasted toward Karl.
[Ding!]
[Detected that the host has repeatedly collided with dark magic. God-Tier Talent has triggered a hundredfold critical strike.]
[You have mastered dark magic — Foul Death Ray.]
The system notification suddenly rang out.
A strange smile appeared at the corner of Karl's mouth.
Your magic is powerful?
Then in the next moment,
it becomes mine.
"Dormammu, you've been hitting me quite happily. Now it's my turn."
Karl let out a long laugh.
He raised one hand and pointed forward.
A black-violet beam shot straight at Dormammu.
"What?"
When Dormammu saw that attack, he was so stunned that for a moment he forgot to dodge.
The black-violet energy beam struck him head-on.
"Hngh."
Dormammu let out a muffled grunt and staggered back a few steps.
The dark energy around his body became somewhat unstable.
He stared at Karl,
his face filled with utter disbelief.
What was this?
How had this human sorcerer learned his magic?
That twisted will, that overwhelming force—there was no mistake.
It was his magic.
This made no sense at all! He had never taught this kid any magic!
So how had he learned it?
How?!
Dormammu felt completely unbalanced inside.
He had researched this spell in the Dark Dimension for who knew how many years before finally mastering it.
So why had Karl learned it instantly?
Was the gap in talent between them really that great?
Which one of them was the true dimensional demon?
Did this world have no fairness left at all?
He could not accept it.
For a moment, red light blazed in Dormammu's eyes.
He was burning with rage now.
He had completely lost his cool.
More and more dark power was drawn over from the Dark Dimension.
When Karl saw this scene,
not only was he not afraid, he became even more excited.
(End of Chapter)
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